----- Original Message -----
From: "Van Snyder" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, November 01, 2002 1:04 PM
Subject: Re: Complex (was double precision constants)
> > James Giles <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >
> > > I run into users all the
> > > time who ask why Fortran spells COMPLEX as CMPLX.
> >
> > The obvious answer is that until Fortran 77, names were constrained to
> > use less than seven characters.
>
> I obviously had a finger malfunction when I typed 77 instead of 90.
That is what I answer too. But the limit on names is now 31
characters (soon to be more). So, most people still ask why
the name isn't COMPLEX. There's been plenty of time to add
a new intrinsic with a more natural spelling. I advocate that too,
but raise the ante with the reason that it also permits improved
semantics without arguing with people about backward
compatibility issues.
--
J. Giles
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